


Not a Sidekick; A Partner

by truemexicanalpha



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Baby Brotp, Fluff and Angst, Halloween, Kid Fic, Mom Brotp, POV Multiple, Pre-Canon, Wee!Scott, halloween fic, wee!stiles
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-10-08
Updated: 2013-10-08
Packaged: 2017-12-28 20:56:40
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,867
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/996616
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/truemexicanalpha/pseuds/truemexicanalpha
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When she enters, Scott and Stiles both have a look on their faces that says <em>caught</em>. She looks at the crumbs around their mouths, and the way they both still seem to be chewing, despite having had enough time to already have eaten one cookie each. Eh, it's Halloween.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Claudia POV

**Author's Note:**

> This manifested from a headcanon I have about Scott and Stiles' choice of Halloween costumes as kids. I'm not even sorry.
> 
> *cough*Also, the title is based off of the GOT line, eventhoughidontwatchthatshow. *hides*
> 
> Let's be homies for life on the tumblr - [alphamexicat](http://alphamexicat.tumblr.com). 
> 
> Check the end notes of chapter one for (possible) trigger warnings.

"Hey! Can you keep still back there!" Claudia demands, peering into the rearview mirror, taking her eyes off of the road every couple of seconds to look back at Stiles. He's already bouncing up and down in the backseat of the Jeep, and he hasn't even had any candy yet. Claudia makes a mental note to speak with her son's pediatrician about his behavior, and whether it's normal for him to act this way even with his medication. Hopefully she can schedule a consultation the same day as- "Mom!" Stiles cuts into her thoughts. "How much longer till we get there?"

"We'll be there in about two minutes, okay? Can you sit still for two minutes?" She chances her driving by turning her head to look at Stiles, who is nodding his head excitedly, while the rest of his body sits placid, hands burrowed under his thighs. _Yeah, definitely gonna have to speak to his doctor_ , she thinks to herself. She turns her gaze back to the road and takes a left turn and two rights before finally pulling the Jeep up to the curb right in front of a mailbox. She can hear Stiles fumbling with his seatbelt, undeniably anxious to finally get out of the car, despite it only being a ten minute car ride to their destination.

It's still pretty early in the evening, and the sun is just beginning to set, so it's no surprise that she doesn't see anyone walking down the streets. She pushes the passenger side door open (note to self: get the passenger door's outside handle fixed) before hopping out on her side. She walks around to the curb and pulls the door fully open to see Stiles already sitting in the front seat, waiting for her to let him out. She puts on a big smile before opening her arms wide for Stiles to jump into them. Once he has his arms around her neck and his legs around her waist, she turns and kicks the door closed with her foot before tightening her arms around him and planting a kiss on his cheek.

"Ewwww mom!" Stiles protests, simultaneously rubbing his hand furiously over his face and trying to wiggle his way out of his mother's arms. "Why would you?"

"You know, you used to let me cuddle you and kiss your face all the time not too long ago." She loosens her grip from around his back and but doesn't let him go. He draws his face back to look at her properly. "What happened to that?"

"Scott says it's not cool to let your mom kiss you. Sorry, mom."

She puts on a fake pout before removing her hands from around him and uses them to lift his arms from her neck. Before she can grab him back by the waist and place his feet onto the ground, he quickly sneaks a kiss onto her cheek and grins. "Don't tell Scott, okay?" He whispers, then he nudges at her arm until she lets go and clambers down her body to stand up on his own. He turns his back toward her and glares up at the house, which is decorated with carved pumpkins, two of which were determinedly done by a child, lining the porch steps, ghosts hanging from the porch, spider webs along the bushes, and a creepy witch figure next to the door.

She clamps her hands onto Stiles shoulders and says "Okay, dude. You ready?" before giving him a gentle push and guiding him up the path to the front door. Approaching the front steps, Claudia hears raised voices, though she can't make any words out, and for the sake of her friend's privacy, doesn't care to. _We should probably wait a few moments_ , Claudia thinks, but before she can tell her son the same thing, he's already run up the steps onto the porch and is ringing the doorbell repeatedly.

"Alright! Alright! I'm coming!" the voice states as it goes lower in volume but closer, and the porch light turns on, "... honestly goes trick-or-treating this early? It's only 6:30." The door swings open to reveal a disheveled Melissa McCall, with white powder in her hair and orange stained fingertips. "Oh, gosh! Claudia, I'm sorry. We weren't expecting you two for another 20 minutes or so."

Stiles, with his jack-o-lantern pail tightly clutched to his chest, looks back and forth between his mom and Melissa, with a quizzical expression, before finally blurting out "Mrs. McCall, what are you s'pose to be? An old lady?"

Melissa fake scoffs before reaching a hand out and ruffling it through Stiles' hair. She pulls her hand back and waves it, signaling them to come in. Claudia places a hand on Stiles' back, guiding him inside, and Melissa closes the door behind then. "No, Stiles. I am not supposed to be an old lady. I was actually baking cookies," Stiles' head shoot up at the word cookies, "before you got here, and then Scott's dad came and scared me and I ended up shaking the bowl of powdered sugar up into my hair."

"Oooh! Mrs. McCall, can I pleeeeaaasssee have a cookie before we go?" At this point Stiles is putting on his most angelic smile, batting his eyelashes, with his hands clasped together over the handle of his pail, as though he's getting ready to say a bedtime prayer. Where the hell did the kid learn that?

"Sure, if your mom says it's okay." Melissa remarks. Out of the corner of her eye. she can see Claudia nodding her head yes. "But tell me Stiles - what are you supposed to be?" Melissa places a confused look on her face, and with a ponderous hand stroke of the chin, she ducks her head to inspect Stiles' constume.

"I'm Robin!"

"You mean like Batman and Robin? Wow, that's interesting. I happen to know for a fact that Batman is upstairs right now. Here, let me call him for you." Stiles' is practically vibrating in anticipation. "Batman! Your sidekick is here!"

"HEY! I am not his sidekick. Batman and Robin are partners." Stiles looks at her with a scowl and folds his arms tightly, though the orange pail prevents them from sitting flushed to his chest.

Melissa throws her hands up in defense. "Okay, sorry about that, Robin." She turns her head back up towards the stairs. "Batman! Your crime-fighting partner is here." She looks back down towards Stiles, whose posture has loosened and he now has a ravenous smile that has crept its way onto his face. "Hey, why don't you go and grab a cookie from the kitchen." Stiles is already shuffling his way there before she finishes her sentence. "They're on the counter. Grab one with the orange frosting on it."

"And be sure to only grab one!" Claudia calls after him. She swings around to look at her son before turning her attention back to Melissa. "Hey, sorry we showed up early. Stiles was just really excited to get here. I tried calling you, but no one picked up. I just assumed you'd be home. Sorry."

"Hey, no. It's fine. My hands were tied up." Melissa waves her fingers in the air to show the orange stains from the food coloring she must've used to make the cookies. "And Rafe was upstairs helping Scott put his costume on."

Right on cue, Scott comes running down the stairs, almost causing himself to tumble in excitement. "Hi mom! Hi Mrs. Skilinski." Claudia smiles at the mispronunciation. "Where's Sti- oh, I mean, where's Robin?" He starts bobbing his head around the foyer, looking behind his mom and Claudia's legs before peering back up at her with a confused look.

"He's in the kitchen, sweetheart." Melissa answers. "He's having a cookie right now. Why don't you go join him in there." There's another one who runs off before she can finish her sentence. She looks back at Claudia and studies her face. "I'm gonna go try to brush this sugar out of my hair before we go. Can you finish frosting the cookies for me?"

"Yeah. Absolutely." Claudia gives her a crooked smile before going into the kitchen. When she enters, Scott and Stiles both have a look on their faces that says _caught_. She looks at the crumbs around their mouths, and the way they both still seem to be chewing, despite having had enough time to already have eaten one cookie each. Eh, it's Halloween.

\---------------

The group of them walk almost the entire neighborhood. When Claudia looks down at her watch, she sees that the time is 8:23. She flashes her watch at Melissa, who nods her head in acknowledgement. "Stiles. Scott." Claudia calls out behind the two boys. "It's getting kind of late okay? And you two have school tomorrow. So we're gonna go to 5 more houses and call it a night." Scott and Stiles stop and groan.

"Really, mom?" Scott turns to look back at Melissa, who is smiling, as though she already anticipated this reaction. She continues walking over to Scott and crouches down in front of him. "Yes Scott, really. But you don't have to go bed right away. You can help your father hand out candy. Or we can watch the Charlie Brown Halloween special, alright?" He slowly nods his head, still hesitant about agreeing to go inside soon. Melissa stands up straight, looking back at Claudia.

"Awwww mommmmm. What do I get?" Stiles huffs from the background.

Claudia moves over to Stiles. "Well, we can always go down the station and visit your dad. See what kind of delinquents they picked up for trying to play pranks tonight. And then we can go home and I'll let you pick out some of your candy to eat tonight before bed." She runs a hand through his hair and moves her other hand swiftly before pulling back. "And besides," Stiles looks up at grinning face, then over to her hand, where she's holding a fun size pack of M&Ms between her fingers, "your bucket is almost overflowing with candy."

Stiles stands there, staring at his mother, with a look of disgust and awe. Scott breaks Stiles' gaze by elbowing him gently, then whispering something in his ear, which immediately perks him up. "Okay mom, let's go." Scott and Stiles run up to the porch of the next house, careful not to let any of their candy spill from their pails.

\---------------

On their walk back to the McCall house, the boys are already frantic. Claudia and Melissa aren't speaking, but they can hear the chatter between their sons right ahead of them. Something about a toy knife and fake blood and jumping out of the bushes. Children really need to learn how to whisper. Staying several paces behind, Melissa finally breaks their own silence. "Have you told John yet?"

"No." Claudia replies firmly, as if her answer is resolute. "I can't bring myself to do it. I just keep imagining all of these different scenarios of me telling him, and I just can't do it. It's too hard."

_Claudia finishes putting Stiles to bed, and John is working late, trying his hardest to be considered for a position as Deputy Sheriff, so she decides to enjoy a little "me time" by taking a relaxing bath. After grabbing the bath fizzies from under the sink and running the water, she moves back over to the vanity to brush her teeth, tie up her hair, and then strip her clothing. An hour later, she finds herself still standing at the vanity, staring at the mirror. The water in the tub has long since turned cold, and she can hear the sound of her Jeep's engine being cut off outside, but she can't bring herself to move her gaze from the mirror, then to her left breast, and back up to the mirror. A lump. Sitting at the top her breast. She's been told about this, about the importance of mammograms, and about keeping an eye out for lumps. But at 33, she never imagined that this would be her life. She never imagined this would be something she would have to worry. She never imagined the possibility really, considering no recorded family history of cancer. But especially not now. Not with a little boy who just turned 7. Not with a new-_

_There's a knock at the bathroom door. "Claudia?" It's John. Shit. How did she not notice him come into the house and up the stairs to their bedroom? "Hey, honey. What are you doing in there?"_

_"Sorry, John. I'm taking a bath. I'll be out in a minute, okay?" She rushes over to the tub to grab a cold, wet washcloth from the edge and rub it against her skin to dampen it. Then she drains the water and wraps herself up in the towel and exits the bathroom, letting John go right in._

_She quickly gets dressed and clambers into their bed, grabbing her book and reading glasses off of the night stand, trying to appear completely casual. While her thoughts do not at all match her appearance. 'Okay, Claudia. Do not panic. It could just be nothing. Honestly. Or it could be benign. Just schedule an appointment and find out for sure before you freak out any more than you already are. This isn't necessairily bad. This doesn't have to ruin everything you have planned for the future. You can still have the-'_

_The light and a cloud of steam from the bathroom opening draws Claudia out of her mental space. John steps over to his dresser, pulls on a pair of boxers and a t-shirt before climbing into his side of the bed and telling Claudia about his day at work. They discuss Stiles' behavioral issues in school, and what the future has in store for them. She never mentions what she found that day._

_It isn't until 2 weeks later, when she finds herself at the hospital for the second time in 3 days, that Melissa accidentally learns about it._

"Claudia, you can't do this by yourself. You have to let John know." Melissa reaches down and takes Claudia hand in hers. "Wouldn't you rather have the support of your husband - of your family - during this hard time?" She can feel Claudia shudder at the word family. She must be concerned with how this will affect Stiles.

"Melissa, no. You don't understand. I can't." She gives Melissa's hand a hard squeeze before pulling it away. "I'm pregnant."

"Oh my god, Claudia!" Melissa stops walking and pulls at Claudia's shoulder, turning her around and bringing her into a hug, while looking over her shoulder to check on Stiles and Scott. They're a couple houses ahead, only one away from the McCall house. Melissa moves away from Claudia's ear to call out behind the boys. "Scott! You and Stiles go inside and eat some candy, okay?" The boys look back at their mothers, confusion engulfing their faces, before shrugging and running up to the porch and into the house. Melissa turns her attention back to Claudia, who has now started letting choked out sobs into her shoulder.

"Hey, hey. Shhh. Don't cry." She begins rubbing circles onto Claudia's back. "So does John know about the baby?"

"He does." Claudia can't bring herself to speak in much more than a whisper. "He does know. And it's why I can't bring myself to tell him. It'll devastate him."

"Why would the baby make telling him about the cancer so hard?"

"Because my doctor recommended I terminate the pregnancy. He says my treatment won't be safe for the baby. So whichever decision I make will be very difficult for us both. Any option I choose, I'll have to sacrifice something."

"This is all the more reason for you to tell him then. He'll be there for you no matter what decision you make, but it would be better if he helped you decide too."

Claudia nods her head, rubbing it against Melissa's sweater. Melissa can't even be bothered by the wet spot on her shoulder at the moment. Claudia finally croaks out, "I know I have to tell him. And I will. I just-" she lets out a long, distressed sigh, " I just need a few more days before my entire life goes to shit, okay?" She finally lifts up her head, but before she can move her hands to dry her face, Melissa's are there wiping the tears away.

"Claudia, you have to listen to me okay?" Claudia gently nods her head, but her face looks empty. "You can't think the worst of this situation, honey. I know I've never had to go through what you're going through, but I have seen many patients who experienced the same emotions you're dealing with right now. The only way to not allow this to consume you is to stay positive, okay?" Melissa moves her hands down to Claudia shoulders, where she just rubs up and down. "You have to stay positive for John, and for Stiles. The last thing that little boy needs is to see his mother sick and depressed. Even on the worst of days, we must always smile for our children." Melissa gives a soft smile to Claudia, a lot to be told hidden behind it. That conversation will have to be for another day.

Claudia lets out a huff of breath that she was unconsciously holding in, and she leans in to wrap her arms around Melissa. The comforting touch is something they both need right now, even if neither of them are quite ready to talk about it. After a long minute, and the unnecessary cat calls from some pervy teenage boys who are, quite frankly, way too old to be trick-or-treating, Claudia and Melissa walk back to the house hand-in-hand. When they walk up to the porch, they see Scott crouched over Stiles, who is lying perfectly still, and Scott seems to have something in his hands.

"Hey!" Melissa interrupts. Scott's head and hands shoot up, and the object, a bottle of ketchup, goes tumbling into the air before hitting the wood of the porch floor, causing a mess on the floor and the bottom of her pants. "Scccccottt! Are you serious?" She bends down to pick up the bottle, and turns back to Scott with a squint and a scowl on her face, pointing at him and back to the ground, gesturing for him to come over to her. "Take this bottle inside." She shoves it at his chest, right at the Batman logo of his costume, which causes him to make an _oooof_ sound. "I want you to go grab some paper towels from the kitchen and come back here and clean this up, understand me? Or else you won't get any candy before bedtime."

She looks over at Stiles, who is still lying dead on his back, probably hoping if he stays still, he won't face any repercussions, and back at her son, who is giving her puppy dog eyes. She stopped giving into those a long time ago, so nuh uh, not gonna work. "Scott, can you please just do what I asked?" Scott shuffles his feet towards the door, flicking his gaze over at Stiles, who - yep, still lying there, before slowly turning the knob. "Scott, wait!" Scott turns back to his mom, trying his best to conceal his smile. "While you're in the kitchen, grab that plate of cookies off of the counter for Stiles and his mom to take home." Scott's smile immediately falls, and his shoulders slump as he turns back to head into the house.

"Alright Stiles." Claudia finally speaks. "Get up now. We have to go home." She reaches her arms out to pick Stiles up off the ground, but he gently pushes her hands away and gets up himself. When he's up, he brushes the back of his pants and his cape. He's probably going to try to sleep in them tonight.

Scott comes back outside with the cookies and enough paper towels to line their sidewalk. He hands the plate over to his mom and turns to Stiles. "I'll see you tomorrow, dude!" The two boys do some kind of awkward high five handshake thing, and their moms can't help but be amused. _That friendship will last for a long time_ , Claudia thinks to herself. _Even if I'm not here to see it_ , she adds, and then rolls her eyes at how quickly her thought turned wicked.

She turns to face Melissa, who is holding the plate out for her to grab. She puts one hand on the the rim of the plate and throws the other around Melissa's shoulder for a half-hug. "We'll talk soon, okay? And I promise, I'll do what we talked about. I just need time."

"I know, sweetie. I know you do." She places a kiss on Claudia's cheek and then pulls away. "But yes, we will talk soon." She gives her a crooked smile, which she is surprised to see returned back.

"Alright Stiles. Let's go home now." Claudia puts a hand on Stiles' back after he bends over to grab his candy bucket and guides him down the steps.

Stiles keeps walking, but turns around and waves. "Bye Scott!" Scott looks up from where he's cleaning up the ketchup and waves goodbye to Stiles. "Bye, Mrs. McCall!" Melissa smiles and waves at the little boy. He faces forward again just in time to keep from tripping over the crack in the sidewalk. While he stands at the door waiting for his mom to open it from the inside, he calls back "Oh, and tell Mr. McCall I said goodbye too."

Claudia stops fidgeting with the key in the door to look up for a second, and even in the dim light of the porch, she can see Melissa's smile weaken. When Melissa's spots Claudia gazing at her from the Jeep, her mouth upturns once more before she turns back to Scott and helps him out with his clean-up.

Finally getting the door open, Claudia climbs into the Jeep and pushes open the passenger door for Stiles to hop in. Once he's in the back seat and buckled in, Claudia throws one last look over to her friend and drives off.

\---------------

She's crying. She can't help it. She's crying. But this time, it's not because she's sad. Not because of what she'll have to give up, or what she might lose. She's crying because she realizes that no matter what happens, there will always be support for herself and her son and her husband. And she thinks to herself, _this won't be so bad. I can do this. I'll tell John tomorrow._

Just as she's wiping the tears from her face, Stiles comes running down the stairs. Still wearing his costume. Or rather, wearing the costume that he decided to put back on after his bath. This is what happens when you give children the liberty of dressing themselves.

"Mom, are you crying?" He moves over to the sofa and pulls Claudia's hands away from her face, freeing her body for him to climb into her lap. Once he's comfortable, he throws his arms around her neck and tilts his head curiously. "Why are you crying?"

She huffs out a laugh at her son. Such a young boy with such an adult attitude. Even if he can be a cheeky little thing sometimes, he can be grown up just as quickly.

"Stiles, sometimes mommy just needs to have a good cry." She wraps her arms around his waist. "You know, just like sometimes you just have a good cry."

Stiles knits his eyebrows. "I DO NOT cry!" He turns his head away from her before looking back, confusion washing over his face. "But I asked why?"

"Well, I'm just a little sad right now." She kisses him on the left cheek. "But then I think of how lucky I am to have a son like you, so it made me feel a lot better." She grabs his face and tilts it to kiss him on the other side. When she shifts it back so that they're looking into each other's eyes, Stiles is beaming.

"Is it because you didn't get any candy tonight?" He squints his eyes and then shoots up, knocking the top of his head on Claudia's chin. "It is! Ouch! Oh, it's okay mom. Would you like me to share my candy with you? I'm going to share my candy with you." Before she can answer his question, he jumps out of her lap and is running back up the stairs, rubbing the crown of his head while he goes.

 _We'll be okay_ , she thinks. _We'll be good._

She has to tell John. She has to tell Stiles. And she'll do it in a day or two, but she just wants to spend these last few moments before everything changes. And she can't be mad at herself for wanting that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There are mentions of cancer and abortion, although the abortion is for medical reasons. Neither go into great detail, but still, if those are bothersome topics, read or don't read accordingly.


	2. Stiles POV

"So we'll be at your house later, alright dude?" Stiles shouts as he walks backwards to the parent pick-up area.

"Awesome! See you later, Stiles!" Scott turns quickly and heads towards his bus, double checking the number on the side. Ever since he got on the wrong bus last month, which caused his dad to have to take off of work and drive over to the school to pick him up himself, which then lead to a huge argument between his parents, Scott has been a lot more attentive about his bus number. The last thing he wants is for his parents to fight again, especially over him.

He looks over to the pick-up area of the school parking lot and sees Stiles climbing up into his mom's blue Jeep. When Stiles finally gets settled in the backseat, he looks up to see Scott staring directly at him, and they wave frantically at each other before a 4th grader behind Scott says "Hey! You're holding up the line." (there was no line) and pushes him onto the bus.

Stiles pats his mom on the arm from the backseat. "Mom! It's Halloweeeeeen!" extending the 'e' for more than was necessary. "Hey, you wanna see what I made in class today?" He grabs his backpack off of the floor and starts rummaging through it before his mom can object. Since there seems to be a hold up at the front of the line, it's not a problem anyway. "Almost got it..." Stiles says with a strain in his voice, obviously putting effort into getting this thing out. "Ah ha! Here, look mom." He shoves it at her face before she has the chance to turn her head.

She grabs it and smiles, obviously proud of his work. "It's beautiful." she lets out. It's a white paper bag with jagged edges and two googly eyes, one slightly higher on the top of the bag than the other. Simple Halloween craft for a bunch of first graders. "Boooooooo!" She shakes the ghost side to side in Stiles' face before handing it back to him.

When she turns back around, the car line is finally moving, so she puts the Jeep in drive and focuses ahead.

"We made these at the beginning of the day and then Miss Cunningham put candy in everyone's bag." He looks at it once more before tucking it back into his bookbag. "And then we got to eat a piece of candy after each activity we did." He shifts a little, tucking his feet under his thighs, so that he can look at the road. They've already left the school parking lot and are on their way home. He slopes back down into his spot.

"Today was so cool, mom! Miss Cunningham brought in a pumpkin that she carved herself and then she put something in it to make it look like smoke was coming out." He sees her eyes looking back at him from the mirror. "Oh, and she was dressed as a witch! She even painted her face green!"

"That's sounds neat, Stiles. I'm glad you had fun today. But we need to talk about tonight."

Stiles let's out a loud groan. "Oh, I know. It's gonna be so much fun. Scott can't wait to see my costume. Oh, and I can't wait to see his either. Do you think Scott's mom is gonna wear a costume? Are you wearing a costume? I wonder what kind of candy people are- "

"Stiles!" He jumps from the interruption. "That's not what I meant, sweetie." He watches as she turns around and stills a glance at him before turning back to the road. "I just want you to be on your best behavior tonight. I know you've been a little antsy since we had to switch your medication, so I'm just asking you to try, okay?" He nods in the backseat. He sometimes can't help the way he feels, especially when he's playing with Scott, but his last medication, something starting with an R, he thinks, didn't help him at all. The new one has been doing a lot better for him.

He raises his hand to his forehead and gives a salute, saying "Aye, aye, Captain!" knowing that she can see him in the mirror.

"Stiles, I'm being serious. You don't want me to come to your class and tell your friends what your real name is, do you?"

He shakes his head furiously at that suggestion. "Noooooo! You can't. I told you, my name will be Stiles. If I can feed my name to a bunch of hungry snakes, I would."

She laughs at his objection and then the car is stopping. Stiles looks out the window and sees they're at the diner where they often meet his dad for lunch when he's working this time of day. "C'mon, Stiles. Your dad is already inside waiting for us."

\---------------

"Mom, have you seen my cape?" Stiles comes running down the stairs and bumps into his mom, who is standing there with his cape hanging from her finger.

He tries to grab it from her, but she raises her arm so that it becomes out of his reach. He tries jumping up for it a few times, but his arm falls short each time. He grunts. "Mom! Stop. C'mon mom. Give it here." He pierces her with an incredulous look, and sees she is just smiling at him. Unbelievable.

When he finally settles down, she does a twirl with her finger, indicating she wants him to turn around. He turns his back towards her, waiting to see what she'll do to him next. Probably throw ice down the back of his shirt, knowing his mom and her pranks. But instead, he feels the silky polyester fabric drape over his shoulders and back, and his mom reaches her hands around the front of his neck to snap the two buttons of the cape together. Finally, she tugs it down once for good measure, just to make sure it won't come off during the night.

"Lemme look at you." She turns him around and lets out a discomforting awwwwww. "My little boy looks so handsome." She grabs at his face before he swats her hands away.

"C'mon mom. Let's go now!" He runs to the front door and turns the knob open, but stops when he hears his mom call out.

"Stiles, we're not expected for another 30 minutes. Let me just call Melissa and let her know we're coming early, okay?" She moves over to the kitchen grabs her purse off of the table to take out her phone. She flips her phone open and goes through her contacts, first calling Melissa's cell phone, and then the McCall house phone. It goes to the voicemail for both numbers. She puts the purse on her shoulder and walks back out of the kitchen and sees Stiles sitting impatiently, legs bouncing up and down, at the foot of the stairs. "No one picked up, dude. How about we wait like 15 mminutes and then we can leave."

"What!? Nooo." Stiles pushes up from of the stairs and folds his arms. "We should go now, mom! Pleeeeeaaasssssseeeeeeeeeeee?" He actually falls to his knees, clasps his hands together, and begs. "Please mom? I just really want to see Scott's costume already, okay? It can't wait."

"Stiles, get off of the floor before you ruin your pants." He stands up immediately, hoping that obeying orders will get him what he wants. He watches his mom look at her phone, then outside the entry windows, and back at the time on her phone before giving a resolved sigh. "Fine. But kid, if we get there and Mrs. McCall is upset about our early arrival, it's on you."

He nods his head obediently before grabbing her hand and yanking her forward. "Yeah, alright. Come on." He bends down to grab his jack-o-antern pail from the floor by the coat rack and rushes out of the house, only stopping a brief moment to let her lock the door from the inside.

\---------------

"Stiles!"

Stiles drops his cookie on the floor at the sound of Scott's voice. He turns around to see Scott running up to him, the cape of his Batman costume flapping as though he's flying. "Duuuude! Your costume is so awesome!" Stiles takes a second to inspect every inch of it before looking back up at his best friend smiling at him.

"Yours too, Robin!" Scott gives an awkward wink, which ends up looking more like he got lemon juice in his eye and he was trying to squeeze it shut to keep it from burning, but Stiles gets the point.

Stiles turns back around to grab his cookie off of the floor and puts it into his mouth. Five-second rule is for the weak at heart. He looks back at Scott, who has his eyebrows drawn together, but then Scott lets his face relax and moves over to the cookie sheet with the freshly frosted cookies and grabs two, one for himself and another for Stiles. "No, dude. my mom said I could only have one." He pushes at the arm the Scott has extended out to him, while Scott begins to nibble on the cookie in his other hand, but Scott just waves it in front of Stiles' face until the boy gives in and grabs it, biting into it with no guilt.

Scott scarfs down the rest of his cookie before grabbing another and begins eating it. Just then, he and Stiles both perk up at the sound of boots knocking on the hardwood floor, undoubtedly on their way into the kitchen. Stiles shoves the rest of the cookie into his mouth, while Scott decides to take fast nibbles, like a gerbil, until his disappears. They stare wide-eyed at each other while chewing as fast as they can, until they hear the footsteps stop and they both turn around to see Stiles' mother standing in from of them. Oh no, we're caught, Stiles thinks, and he wonders if Scott can hear his thoughts, because he seems to be conveying the same facial expression. She eyes them both suspiciously before shrugging her shoulders and moving over to the counter to frost the rest of the cookies.

They both let out a sigh of relief from their respective cookie-filled mouths and Stiles swears he hears his mom giggling over the bowl of frosting. _Maybe she thinks the color orange is funny?_

Twenty minutes later, when Scott's mom finally comes back downstairs, hair back to its normal color, Stiles and Scott practically trample each other trying to get out of the house. It is now officially dark outside, so there are children walking down the street already. "Our costumes are so much better than theirs." Stiles tells Scott as they stand on the porch, waiting on Scott's mom. He's waving over at a group of boys about their age dressed as Power Rangers. "Hey, dudes! Your costumes-" He's interrupted by a soft slap to the back of his head. He turns around and gawks at the perpetrator, his mother. "Hey! What was that for?"

"Stiles, I told you. You need to be on your best behavior. Or else you know what happens. Hey Scott, do you happen to know what Stiles' real name is?" She can see her son shaking his head furiously behind Scott.

Apparently, Scott can feel the wind being produced by Stiles' swift action, but when he turns around to look at his friend, Stiles' head has stilled and he's standing there tight-lipped, avoiding Scott's gaze. Eventually, Scott looks back at her and shakes his head. "No, I don't."

"Okay." She says, and leaves it at that.

Stiles can hear voices coming from the inside of the house and then Mrs. McCall appears, talking in the general direction of their living room, where Scott's dad must be. "Please Rafe, just pass out the candy until I get back, okay?" He must say yes, Stiles thinks, because he sees her smile as she pulls the door shut behind her. "Alright guys, let's go!"

\---------------

In between the houses they visit, Scott and Stiles talk a lot. Okay, Stiles talks. A lot.

 

"Do you know Lydia Martin?"  
"No."  
"She's in Mr. Reid's class. I'm going to marry her one day."  
"Cool dude. I'll be there."

"I think I'll be a police officer like my dad when I get older. Do you want to work for the police like your dad?"  
"Probably not. He doesn't seem very happy doing it. He's not very nice to my mom when he comes home from work. I don't want to be like that when I get older."  
"Well that's okay. I was just hoping we could be real crime-fighters one day."  
"Like Batman and Robin? Dude, we can totally still be like them. Except you know, our parents are still alive."

"Jackson is so mean."  
"Dude, Jackson is a butt."  
"I wish I could just get back at him for all the mean stuff he does to me."  
"But I heard somebody say Jackson's parents aren't his real parents. He'll be nice once he gets over it."  
"I hope he does."

"There's one girl in the 2nd grade. Cora something. She seems really weird."  
"Oh yeah. I've seen her at recess before. My parents were talking about her family before. I think they're all probably weird."

"My mom's been kind of sad lately. I hear her crying sometimes."  
"Me too, man. It sucks. I don't want my mom to cry."  
"Me neither. We should do something to cheer them up."

 

But Scott doesn't mind when Stiles talks. His mom and Stiles' mom sat him down one day and told him about Stiles' problem, his ADD, but it doesn't bother him. Stiles is his best friend, and he would much rather a hyperactive, chatty Stiles than a quiet Stiles. Any day.

They stay ahead of their moms, letting them have "adult conversations" (whatever that means), but Stiles turns his head every so often to look at his mom. He sees her smiling, and he feels a lot better about that.

By the time they get back to Scott's house, the two of them are radiating excitement. They hope that their prank will make their moms laugh and that it won't be too scary.

"Scott! You and Stiles go inside and eat some candy, okay?" He hears Scott's mom call out. They both turn around and he sees Ms. McCall holding onto his mom, the way that Claudia holds onto him whenever he's sad. He can't help but show his confusion. She seemed so happy just minutes ago, and now she's sad. Scott looks at Stiles, and then the confusion drifts onto his face because he's wondering what has affected his friend. But before they can talk about it, Stiles starts shuffling towards the front door, so Scott follows. "Now we definitely have to do the prank." Stiles whispers to Scott as they run up the steps and into the house.

\---------------

"Sorry we didn't get to do our prank, mom." Stiles says as he opens up a fun size Snickers. "I tried to cheer you up earlier, but it didn't really work."

"Hey, sweetie." She pushes the candy wrappers to the floor and pulls Stiles into her lap, placing his back to her chest. She cranes her neck around and down at him. "It's not your job to make mommy happy. I should be happy because of you - for you. You shouldn't have to try and make me happy. And I promise, from now on, I will always be happy, okay?" Stiles smiles and nods, rubbing his cheek against her hair, before crawling away to the other side of the sofa to grab his candy bucket. He moves back over to his mom and positions himself the way he was before, and then he hands her a piece of candy from the bucket. Not soon after, they're both sound asleep with _It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown_  playing in the background.


End file.
